ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — Orjan Nyland fell to his hands and knees, his face resting on the AT&T Stadium turf with a half-dozen Ivory Coast players strewn about him after Norway's 2-1 World Cup victory that was preserved by the goalkeeper's spectacular last-minute save.
It was relief for Nyland and pain for those orange-clad opponents after a leaping, twisting, left-handed stop that's sure to live in Norwegian lore. It was, after all, the final image of the country's first win in the knockout round on soccer's biggest stage.
There's little doubt the moment wasn't lost on Nyland, based on the shouts and chest bumps he shared with several teammates immediately after the save.
“He’s been looking great for a long time,” coach Stale Solbakken said through a translator after the victory in the round of 32. “I think he’ll play better and better.”
Norway took the lead in the 86th minute on striker Erling Haaland's fifth goal of this year's World Cup, and the team spent the rest of regulation and injury time turning back several surges from the suddenly desperate Elephants.
In the sixth of what was supposed to be seven minutes of injury time, Norway captain Martin Odegaard took down Ibrahim Sangare not far from the top of the penalty area.
Amad Diallo, who scored the equalizer for Ivory Coast in the 74th minute on a stellar individual effort in the penalty area, took the free kick and sent a shot whistling toward the left post. Nyland took two quick steps in that direction, jumped and reached his left hand across his body to deflect the ball over the net.
Earlier in the first half, Nyland stopped a point-blank shot from Nicolas Pepe, who scored both Ivory Coast goals in the group stage finale against Curacao.
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Nyland, who plays for Spanish club Sevilla, made his 74th appearance for the national team, but this is the first World Cup for all of the Norwegians. The 35-year-old Nyland was only 7 years old when Norway last played at the World Cup in 1998.
Nyland's four saves against Ivory Coast were his most in three starts. He also had to contend with 14 corner kicks.
Next for Nyland, Haaland and their teammates is five-time champion Brazil, which lost to Norway in the group stage 28 years ago. The rematch is Sunday in East Rutherford, New Jersey.
“Amazing achievement to go through to the next round,” Odegaard said. “So let’s enjoy the day, let’s enjoy the moment and then it’s time to prepare for Brazil, which is going to be a tough game. But in football everything is possible, and we’re going to give it a good try and we’ll see.”
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